The Chile international arrived at Old Trafford from Arsenal in a swap deal which saw Henrikh Mkhitaryan move in the opposite direction.

United’s executive vice chairman Ed Woodward revealed that the excitement generated by Sanchez’s signing saw United set a club record for shirt sales in January, three times the previous best, while confirmation of the transfer prompted 75% more social media interactions than Neymar’s world-record move to PSG.

Sanchez is reported to be earning a Premier League high £350,000-a-week salary, a figure that even runaway Premier League leaders Manchester City were reluctant to offer but Woodward is confident United are in a strong enough position to be able afford the former Barcelona star’s salary.

The announcement of Alexis Sanchez’s signing on Instagram generated over two million likes the most in the club’s history (Picture: Instagram)Manchester United set a new club record for January shirt sales on the back of confirming Alexis Sanchez’s signing (Picture: Getty)

‘Our solid business model has allowed us to invest in the future of the Club with the extension of Jose Mourinho’s contract as manager and the acquisition of Alexis Sanchez,’ he added.

‘We look forward to the remainder of the season with confidence.’

As well as being a commercial asset, Sanchez has made an immediate impact on the pitch, starting all three of United’s fixtures since his arrival and opening his goalscoring account during last weekend’s 2-0 win over Huddersfield.